Verify your target!

[llewokj]

A bow hunter in Colorado just fatally shot a 14 year old boy in the chest. The boy was hunting with his father. I can't imagine blindly shooting at something in bow range.

"Hunter who shot boy, 14, identified" article at http://daily.gazette.com/Olive/Tablet/T ... id=Ar01505

[powderhogg01]

that is absolutely absurd... fear of being shot by some drunk is why I switched to archery... now I have to worry about being arrowed too... next we will all be wearing blaze for all seasons... good grief. feel bad for the boys father, what a terrible way to end a hunt..
as for rec shooting, I have been on board with ending that... plenty of gunranges out there.. no need for people to be blowing their ammo loads into the mountains.. especially during hunting seasons.

[Elkduds]

The shooting victim was a 14 year old archer, hunting w his father. The killer was a muzzleloader hunter.

http://www.gjfreepress.com/news/1819221 ... grand-mesa

[powderhogg01]

Maybe this will be cause to push the muzzleloader season back to not coincide with the archery hunt here in co.. if it was a muzzy who shot the kid. Either way what a terrible ordeal in the woods to have to deal with. Once when I was a young boy about 13 my father and I were rifle hunting in the wasatch mountain of utah for deer. We had made a good stalk and were withing 100 yards of a nice buck, I take a knee and line up when I hear a shot go off and whizz by my ear. I kid not, I heard the bullet pass within feet of my head and hit the dear I was aiming at. Ever since that day and the following encounter I have had a bad taste in my mouth for the average rifle hunter.. We took up archery and have not had an incident like it again. It is really sad to hear this happening to a young man during archery season.. Still do not understand how someone could mistake a human for a game species of any kind.

[Dlove]

This is sickening. I'm leaving out Friday afternoon to head to Colorado and I'm taking along my 7 & 11 year old. I guess since we will be sharing the mountain with muzzleloader guys on Saturday evening and Sunday I think I will have my boys wear orange hats. If we get into elk hot & heavy they can slip them off until the encounter is over.

[huntalittle]

I hope more info comes out on this tragedy....not sure how anyone can mistake an elk and a human either......were decoys involved? Wrong place at the wrong time for sure! Having your kids wear an orange hat sounds like a great plan to me! Safety first!

[pointysticks]

RIP Justin.

sad. for everyone.

[ak32]

This is really sickening. This should NEVER happen. ALWAYS know your target and what's beyond it. Only a few more days of muzzleloader season thankfully, but damn this is frightening.

[powderhogg01]

its the last few days when people get desperate and take unethical shots. Does anyone know if anymore information is available. I read that it was confirmed muzzleloader to the chest. not confirmed accidental. I feel truly heartbroken for all involved as this is not how hunting is supposed to end. Just goes to show... gotta keep on your toes. I still can not imagine how someone could mistake a person for a game species... unless they were highly intoxicated.

[ak32]

its the last few days when people get desperate and take unethical shots. Does anyone know if anymore information is available. I read that it was confirmed muzzleloader to the chest. not confirmed accidental. I feel truly heartbroken for all involved as this is not how hunting is supposed to end. Just goes to show... gotta keep on your toes. I still can not imagine how someone could mistake a person for a game species... unless they were highly intoxicated.

What scares me are the people that react and shoot at basically anything moving in the woods. I hope more info comes out about this. It blows my mind how people can mistake humans for any kind of game animal.

[Lark Bunting]

This is sickening. I'm leaving out Friday afternoon to head to Colorado and I'm taking along my 7 & 11 year old. I guess since we will be sharing the mountain with muzzleloader guys on Saturday evening and Sunday I think I will have my boys wear orange hats. If we get into elk hot & heavy they can slip them off until the encounter is over.

We always have orange with us in the woods for a pack out. Two weeks ago we were trailing a small bull onto a bench. As we approached we called in another hunter...and heard two shotgun blasts from the bench (people were grouse hunting).

Not sure this picture uploads but I made my son put on the orange hat.

https://scontent.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-x ... e=565E76D2

Yeah, the picture is too large. You can copy and paste it into a browser if you want to see it.

[Charina]

I know there have been instances of people shooting at unverified targets (movement in the bushes). Those are totally unacceptable obviously. What idiot is going to shoot with a minimal chance of hitting a vital, rather than wait until seeing the vitals?

However, I'm willing to withhold judgment that such is what happened in this case. Even a ML projectile can travel a VERY long way and still be lethal. It happens. I know. I was hit by a stray .22 about 35 years ago. It wasn't a problem of not verifying a target. It was pure and total chance. I probably wouldn't be here either if I hadn't just raised my hand to my mouth to eat a cherry. Blocked it from hitting the center of my chest with my wrist bones. The trajectory probably would have put it through the top of my heart or the aortic/pulmonary veins/arteries. As terribly tragic as the story is, sometimes crap just happens, and its purely an accident, possibly even the result of responsible and proper prudence. If we all want to be safe from such, we shouldn't be in the woods (even during archery-only seasons - other hunters are not the only thing that kills hunters).

[Lark Bunting]

Not sure what to make of this statement:

"Authorities say they are investigating the shooting as an “incident” and that they have not determined if the shooting was accidental."

Meaning this might have been intentional?! Makes me wonder if there wasn't a conflict between archery hunters and muzzle loader hunters.

[chiledog]

I learned a great lesson the hard way as a teenager rifle hunting deer.
DEFINE AND KNOW YOUR TARGET.
Up on a mountain and far from any roads, my buddy raises his rifle to shoot a 'deer' that he sees banging his horns on a tree.
I didn't see it so I stepped over to pull down his rifle but he pulled the trigger before I got my hand on it.
He shot a 16 year old boy that was hunting with his mom and dad. The boy was another friend of mine.
The boy survived, thank God, but lost 2 middle fingers and a big chunk of muscle from his thigh.
His mom was there and went ballistic. Who wouldn't.
We had to make a stretcher and haul him out about 4 miles.
My 'hunting buddy' had his hunting privileges revoked for 10 years.

[Tigger]

The firearm safety rule is know your target AND WHAT IS BEYOND. If you are shooting toward an area that the bullet will travel beyond your target and potentially hit someone, that is not a safe shot. Shooting a skylined target is an example of this. This just sickens me to no end.

[Chucksteele1]

Tragic story.
It's bad enough us archery hunters have to worry about the other predator out in the woods. Other hunters making unethical or poor shots, should not be one of them.
I agree, no fire arm hunters should be in the woods the same time as now hunters. I'm a game bird hunter myself. It's expensive but quite fun shooting grouse with a bow and arrow. Just my opinion, let the firearm hunters in the woods at the same time. Leave the archery hunters to themselves. At least the effective range is much shorter. Lessens the chance of an accident like this happening. At least one could only hope.

[pointysticks]

i would like to add that:

Using your riflescope as "binoculars" is just a really bad idea.

[Dr. Rx]

Just got back from elk hunting..found.it perplexing that in the midst of archery elk they allow rifle deer..you should have seen the lazy hunters driving their quads with loaded rifles for that road shot... I can't figure this out.There will be more accidental shootings like this...NOTE to all fish and game departments : Keep archery seasons on its own without any other form of hunters.. this is not to hard to figure out